HUSH-HUSH DIPLOMACY

12.18.11

U.S. May Free Taliban Prisoners

Mandel Ngan / AFP-Getty Images

The secret talks that the U.S. has been carrying out over the past 10 months with Afghanistan’s Taliban insurgents may have reached a turning point. As part of the diplomatic effort, the U.S. may transfer some Taliban prisoners from Guantánamo Bay into the custody of the Afghan government. In return, the Taliban would need to offer a similar confidence-building measure, such as a denunciation of terrorism. One senior U.S. official said: “The challenges are enormous. But if you’re where we are … you can’t not try. You have to find out what’s out there.”